


Truth or Dare

by yourcroft



Category: Riverdale (TV 2017)
Genre: F/M, Fluff, Jealousy, Mutual Pining, Truth or Dare
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-03-19
Updated: 2020-03-19
Packaged: 2021-03-01 03:28:43
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 3
Words: 3,593
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/23218519
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/yourcroft/pseuds/yourcroft
Summary: The gang goes out for Veronica's birthday, and when they end up back at her place, games ensue.
Relationships: Jughead Jones & Reader, Jughead Jones/Reader, Jughead Jones/You
Comments: 1
Kudos: 34





	1. Delirium

It was Veronica's Birthday. In honor of surviving another year at Riverdale, she demanded you, Betty, Archie, Kevin, and Jughead go out to party.

Veronica went all out, a sleek black dress with a plunging neckline to match her flawless waves and dark makeup. Her heels were sky high, and her nails blood red.

Betty was comparatively understated, but even then, only slightly. Veronica had coaxed her into backless dress in what was becoming, according to V, her signature color: pastel pink.

You, on the other hand, had just barely been convinced to ditch sweatpants. It was Friday night for God's sake! But, through the combined effort of Betty and Veronica, the sweatpants were surrendered in favor of a pair of jeans and a t-shirt. You were only going because the girls told you you had to get yourself out there, and honestly, they were probably right. If Jughead didn't like you, that was fine, you had told yourself, you'd just find someone else.

The car was so crowded that Betty had to sit on Veronica's lap. The party was at a local club less than fifteen minutes out of town. Still, it was exhilarating to escape the drama of Riverdale, if only for a few hours. The club, Delirium, was packed. Music was blasting and blue and pink light flashed widely. The entire school had been invited, and it looked as though the entire school had come.

"Ok!" Veronica, half-shouted over the din, "Buddy system! Archikins is with me. B, you go with Kevin, and Jughead, take (Y/N). Don't lose each other! Make sure your phone is on. We'll reconvene in an hour. Until then, au revoir, my darlings. Ginger here is going to buy me a drink." You could've sworn Archie gave Jughead a subtle wink before Veronica grabbed him by the hand and whisked him away toward the bar.

"Why do I feel like I'm on a class field trip?" muttered Jughead.  
You laughed. "Fasten your seatbelts. I have a feeling we're in for one hell of a night."  
"School buses don't have seatbelts." You glared at him but stopped when you saw the smirk tugging at his lips.  
"Shut up, I need a drink." You pushed his shoulder away playfully and try to ignore the tingling in your fingertips.  
"Seriously? I didn't think you were the juvenile delinquent type."  
"I'm full of surprises. Besides, I've had a crappy week."  
"Oh. Did, uh, did you want to talk about it?" He fiddled with the hem of his hoodie.  
"Ooh," you teased, "I didn't think you were the touchy-feely type."  
"I guess we're both full of surprises," he chuckled. A faint blush coloring his cheeks, but he still looked concerned.  
You sighed.  
"I'm fine, it's just... I wanted something to happen, but it's not going to work out."  
"Oh." He didn't press, and you were glad.  
"Now, about that drink. Want anything?" you asked.  
"I'm good," he said and shoved his hands in the pockets of his jeans awkwardly.  
"I'll be right back," you said.

Delirium was notorious for serving underage, but it still took you some flirting to get something strong. The man behind the counter was tall, with long blonde hair and a five o'clock shadow.  
"On the house," he said, handing you a red solo cup with a wink. Oh. Maybe a little to much flirting. You drained in one long pull and breathed out, feeling the alcohol buzz in your chest.  
"Another," you said to the bartender, and then, worried it sounded too much like a command, "please."  
"As you wish." He winked again. You cringed. (How could someone make references to The Princess Bride sound so cringey?)  
You gave him a cautious smile and swiveled on your heels, scanning the room for Jughead. He was in the corner of the room, talking to someone. They were wearing a shimmering silver top and skin-tight black jeans. You watched, hoping to catch a glimpse, but no luck. You could see Jughead though, laughing, and then, taking a drink from the girl's cup.

You but your lip. It's fine, you told yourself, I knew he liked someone else. Still, it was tearing at your heart, just a little.  
"Hey, miss. Did you want your drink?" Oh yeah.  
"Thanks." You took the cup from him and were just about to walk away when you remembered you had nowhere to go. Whatever. What had you told yourself earlier? If Jughead didn't like you, you'd find someone else.

You turned back to the bartender. He winked, for the third time in 10 minutes, and you cringed internally for him, yet again.  
"What's your name?" you asked.

The bartender's name was Matt. Matt, as it turned out, was holy uninteresting. He was pretty attractive, there was no denying that, but not exactly one for deep intellectual conversation. He was a senior, but at the local high school, which was why you had never seen him around. He had a dog. He liked lunch. During the time you sat there, nursing your drink, he winked four more times. Eventually, he had to get back to work, saving you from some awkward exit story (Your best friend's aunt's pet lizard has bird flu?), but he scribbled his name and number on a receipt. You stuffed it in the pocket of your jeans alongside your phone with a "thanks" and made your way to find Veronica and Betty with a faint buzz in your veins.

It turns out you had spent quite a while droning Matt out. You found them, along with Kevin, Archie, and Jughead, by the door.  
"(Y/N)! You're two minutes late! I'll have you drawn and quartered for this!" she slurred, leaning on the wall, obviously drunk. This was confirmed when she slipped, leaving Archie to catch her by the arms.  
"Ok, I think it's time to get you home," Archie said propping her back up.  
"No! C'mon Roxy Red, we're just started."  
"Ronnie, you are drunk. Like, very drunk. You need some water."  
"I have some," Betty interjected, pulling a giant water bottle out of the huge handbag hanging over her shoulder.  
"Jeez Betts, you have everything in there. That's some Hermione Granger level shit."  
Veronica giggled and took the bottle. She took a sip, tripped over her too-high heels and spilled the water over you. Archie managed to grab Veronica at the last second and hoist her up again.  
"Shit (Y/N), I'm so sorry," Veronica said.  
"It's fine." You crossed her arms over your chest. The water was ice cold, and, within seconds, it had soaked your shirt through. Honestly, you felt like crying.  
"Here." It was Jughead. He handed you his beanie, and for a second you were just confused until he hooked his fingers under the hem of his hoodie.  
"Switch?" he offered sheepishly, gesturing you to give him his crown back in exchange for the sweatshirt.  
"Thanks," you muttered self-consciously, taking the hoodie and pulling over your head. It was warm, cozy, and all of the sudden you wanted to cry again, but for a different reason.  
"I think we should take you home, Ronnie," Archie reiterated.  
"Seconded," said Kevin and Betty and Jughead nodded. You were still dazed. The smell of Jughead so close, it was a lot.  
"Nooo," Veronica protested faintly, but the redhead was already carrying her bridal style, out the door and to the car.


	2. A Game

Back at the Lodge house, Veronica sent Kevin and Betty to grab burgers and milkshakes from Pop's. Mrs. Lodge was visiting New York, and wouldn't be back for a couple of days. Archie was in the kitchen, force-feeding Veronica water and crackers.  
You plopped yourself down in the plush sofa and Jughead stood in the corner of the room, as per usual. An awkward silence ensued.  
"Did you want your hoodie back? I'm sure V has some fancy Louis Vuitton jacket I can borrow," you said, already standing up to hand it back.  
"No, no, it's fine. I'm not cold." He gave you a small smile that made you melt.  
Now that you thought about it, you had never really seen him without a baggy sweatshirt. Without it, though, wow. He was built solid, much more than you expected, not that you, you know, thought about that. He had on a simple grey t-shirt, but it clung to his arms in a way that would haunt your dreams in a good way.  
Suddenly there was a noise from the kitchen like someone was hitting the cabinets. You and Jughead both moved to help, assuming the worst, but then there was a laugh and the unmistakable sounds of kissing.  
Jughead didn't seem to notice the latter and was still walking toward the kitchen, so you grabbed by the shoulder.  
"Wait, Jug."  
"What?" he asked, confused.  
There was another noise like the first, them:  
"Ronnie, you're still super tipsy, can't we do this tomorrow? They're in the next room. They'll hear us."  
"Unacceptable Archiekins, it's my birthday, and you're my present. I'm not a patient girl."  
Jughead's widened in a mild panic and his face turned red.  
"Oh," he said.  
Thankfully, just then, the doorbell rang. It was the food.

The clan settled in the living room, in a circle on the floor. For a few minutes, there was only the sound of eating.  
"Jeez, (Y/N), slow down, no one's going to take it away from you," Kevin laughed.  
You stuck your tongue out at him and finished your burger 30 seconds later.  
"I need to text my mom," you said pulling your phone out of your back pocket.  
"Hey, what's that?" asked Veronica, sipping on a strawberry milkshake.  
You had accidentally knocked the receipt with the bartender's number out of your pocket.  
"Oh, nothing," you said and stuffed it into the pocket of Jughead's hoodie. You glanced at him and he looked at you curiously, head tilted.  
"Ooh! Someone's got a secret! I think it's time for a game, what say you?" Veronica exclaimed.  
You groaned.  
"Truth or Dare?" Veronica wiggled her eyebrows.  
"What is this, middle school?" Jughead questioned at the same time as you asked "Seriously, is this eighth grade?".  
"Sure, why not?" Kevin said mischievously, "I'll go first. Truth or Dare... Archie!"  
Archie glanced at Veronica, who was currently drinking his milkshake. "Truth."  
"When did you have your first kiss?"  
Archie rolled his eyes. "What if you don't want to answer?"  
"Strip!" yelled Veronica, causing Betty and Archie, sitting next to her, to wince.  
"Ok, I was 13, Ava McAlester, it was during Spin the Bottle."  
"I knew!" Betty sprung to her feet, "You said you didn't go to that party, but I knew it!"  
"I didn't want to hurt your feelings! Your mom wouldn't let you go."  
"I could've snuck out!" Archie just laughed light-heartedly in response.  
Betty sat back down with an indignant "humph".  
"It's my turn. Jughead. Truth or Dare?" she said.  
"I'm not playing."  
"Like hell," said Betty, "C'mon, Jug, it's V's birthday." She hiccuped.  
"You are so drunk."  
"Truth it Dare," Betty demanded, ignoring his jab.  
"Truth."  
"First celebrity crush?"  
"Natalie Wood."  
"Who's that?" asked Kevin.  
"An actress," said Jughead.  
"From what?" Veronica.  
"Rebel Without a Cause," you and Jughead said at the same time. He smiled coyly. You felt a rush of warmth to your face.  
"And West Side Story," he added, " and - "  
"My turn!" said Veronica impatiently, "this is too tame. Kevin?"  
"Truth."  
"Spit or swallow?"  
"Swallow," said Kevin, without hesitation. Nearby, Betty looked confused for just a second before her jaw dropped. Her face was beginning to match the color of Archie hair.  
Veronica nudged Archie, whose eyes were wide.  
"Oh yeah, um, my turn." He surveyed his options.  
"Ronnie. Tru - "  
"Dare."  
Archie took a deep breath as if bracing himself. "We're gonna need whipped cream and more alcohol."

A couple of rounds later everyone was significantly more inebriated. Everyone except Veronica, never one to dodge a dare, had lost at least their shoes and even Veronica was covered with whip cream. You had to surrender Jughead's hoodie back to him when he asked about the receipt. Luckily, your shirt was mostly dry.  
It was Betty's turn.  
"Kevin, truth or dare?"  
"Truth"  
"Have you ever had a sex dream about someone in this room? Oh, and you have to describe it." Betty smiled sweetly.  
"Damn, Cooper," Veronica said, proud.  
"You little fucker." Kevin discarded his shirt and threw it at Betty. She laughed and dodged it with ease.  
"It was one time!" he snapped with fake indigence. Archie and Jughead were both red as stop signs. All the girls exploded with giggles.  
Still laughing, Veronica chose Jughead.  
"This won't end well," he muttered so only you could hear.  
"Well?"  
"Truth. Seems like that will do the least damage."  
"Hmm..." Veronica tapped her chin thoughtfully. " I'm out of truths. What do you think Arch? Any ideas?" Archie thought for a moment and then whispered something in her ear.  
"Hey! You can't team up on me. Can she?" He looked at you, and you shrugged.  
"House rules, male Wednesday Addams," said Veronica, "Okay, so, here's my question: Who do you like?"  
"That was an anticlimax. You needed two people to come up with that? I'm sure we can you guys a sixth-grader if you need tutoring," quipped Jughead.  
"Oh, shut it Jughead. Answer or strip."  
A shard of glass pierced your heart. You had forgotten about the silver-clad girl from the bar. Were you about to learn her name?  
Jughead glanced at Archie, who mouthed "Just do it". Jughead sighed, shook his head, and took his shirt off. What was Archie talking about, you thought. Surely Archie already knew who Jughead had a crush on. Maybe you could try to get the name out of Archie later.

Damn. It was hard to look good shirtless next to Archie, but... damn. Jughead Jones had abs. Muscles rippled in his back and along his arms and your mouth was suddenly very dry. You reached for what was left Betty's milkshake  
"Can you blame me for dreaming about that?" Kevin breathed. You almost choked.  
A giggle erupted from across the room. Veronica had started laughing. She laughed harder and harder until she was wheezing and gasping for air, positively shaking. It went on for minutes.  
"I'm glad you think I'm funny V, but I'm not that warranted that much laughter," Kevin said.  
"No, no. It's not that," Veronica said when she was finally able to breathe again, "it's that, he took his freaking shirt off before he took the damn hat off." She shook her head in mock bewilderment. "He would literally rather strip his shirt than the beanie." She held a straight face for a couple of seconds before burst back into laughter, this time joined by Betty, Kevin and Archie.  
Jughead who had closed in onto himself self-consciously glanced at you. You shared a look before both joining in, you giggling and him chuckling quietly.

Everyone went around the circle a couple more times.  
Kevin dared Veronica to kiss Betty, and it was... passionate, to say the least, resulting in a not so causal pillow-in-lap situation for Archie. Betty managed to extract that Jughead's crush was single and Veronica got that the group knew her.  
Archie dared you to sit in Jughead's lap. You felt like you might explode every time he shifted his position. You tried not to think about his bare chest behind you. Focus on something else. Focus on the game. It was your turn.  
"Juggie."  
"Hmm?" he asked, distracted.  
"Truth or dare?"  
"Oh, um. Truth."  
"Who was that girl you were talking to at the club? The one with the silver shirt."  
"Valerie." Shit. Valerie was nice, it was hard to hate someone so neutral.  
"Yeah, she wanted to know if there was a spot open at the Blue & Gold. Apparently her boyfriend wants to be a journalist," he continued.  
"Oh," you said, voice breaking. Valerie had a boyfriend. So she couldn't be Jughead's crush.

The game drew to a close and they cleared the mess. Slowly, everyone filtered out with a promise to see each other Monday.  
"Happy birthday, Veronica!" you yelled into the house as you left to grab a ride with Betty.

The night was warm. You changed into cotton shorts and ditched your still damp t-shirt. You were just about to crawl under the covers when you hear your text alarm.

Jughead: Truth or dare?  
You: I thought we finished the game  
Jughead: Humor me  
You: Truth  
Jughead: Who's Matt?  
You: The bartender at Delirium. How'd you know his name?  
Jughead: The one with the long hair?  
Jughead: It was on the receipt you left in my jacket  
You: Yeah  
Jughead: Did you want the number?  
You: God, no. He talked about how his favorite commercial for 10 minutes  
Jughead: That bad?  
You: That was the most interesting part of our conversation  
Jughead: Why'd you keep talking to him?

Because I was jealous, you thought, of you and Valerie.

You: I don't know. I was bored.  
You: Truth or dare?  
Jughead: Truth  
You: Why did Archie ask you who your crush was? Doesn't he know?  
Jughead: Yeah, he knows  
You: And...  
Jughead: What do I do if I can't answer?  
You: I don't know  
Jughead: Picture me taking my shirt off  
Jughead: I mean, for the game  
Jughead: Nevermind

You smile to yourself.

You: Goodnight, Juggie  
Jughead: Goodnight (Y/N)


	3. Better Than Okay

It was Friday night again. This time you were by yourself. Your parents were staying out of town for a few nights and wouldn't be back until Sunday. You pulled on your favorite pajamas and snuggled up in front of Netflix. It was raining outside and you listened to the pitter-patter of the drops on your roof as you scrolled through the menu. What to watch? You were deciding between options when your phone buzzed.

Jughead: Hey, where are you?  
Y/N: Home, why?  
Jughead: Archie just ditched me.  
Jughead: Can I come over?  
Y/N: I'll make extra popcorn  
Jughead: Thanks  
Y/N: Np

You stood up to grab a brown popcorn bag. Glancing at the microwave's clock, you saw it was just before 10 o'clock. Jughead has been over to your house before, but usually not this late.  
I wonder why Archie left him, you thought absently as you shoved the bag in and set the time. It didn't sound like Archie to abandon his friends. You picked a movie on Netflix and dumped the popcorn into a giant metal bowl, placing it precariously on the couch.

The doorbell rang 5 minutes later and you opened it to find Jughead standing sheepishly in your doorstep, soaked.  
"Oh my god!" You had forgotten it was raining. You moved to the side and ushered him in.  
Throwing a towel at him, you pointed to the couch.  
"I picked a movie, but you can change it if you want. I'm gonna get more blankets."  
"Thanks," he said and moved to sit on the couch.  
"And take that sweatshirt off, it's soaking. You're gonna get hypothermia."  
He laughed.

When you returned from your search for blankets, arms filled with bounty, your jaw almost hit the floor. Jughead was sitting on the towel he had put on the couch. His sweatshirt was gone and his wet shirt clung to his chest. Something else was different. His hat was gone. Dark curls glistened with raindrops. He glanced at you.  
"You coming?"  
Soon you two were cozy under an avalanche of blankets, popcorn in hand.  
"You didn't change the movie?" you asked.  
"It's one of my favorites," he replied nonchalantly. You smiled and pressed play.

The end credits rolled.  
"Hey, thanks for letting me stay here."  
"You can stop thanking me. That's what friends do," you responded.  
"Still."  
"It's not a problem. I like hanging out with you." He didn't respond, but you saw the shadow of a smile cross his lips.  
"Archie's kind of an asshole for ditching you."  
"It's fine, he was helping Veronica with something important."  
"Still," you said.  
"It's not a problem. I like hanging out with you," he echoed softly. You rolled your eyes jokingly but stopped when you saw him staring at you. The closing music of the movie was still playing.  
"If I say something, will you promise you won't hate me?" he said, still looking into your eyes.  
"Juggie, I would never hate you," you responded, suddenly concerned.  
"You say that now." You couldn't tell if that sarcasm.  
"What did you do, kill someone?" you joked, then turned serious, "Wait, did you actually kill someone?" He smiled half-heartedly.  
"No, it's nothing like that. It's just..." he trailed off.  
"What?" you pressed.  
"I like you Y/N."—he winced at how corny he sounded—"I mean, as more than a friend. I'm sorry if that's weir–"  
You kissed him. Before you even knew what you were doing, before you could think a single coherent thought, you kissed him.  
He stiffened at first, surprised, only for a second. He kissed you back grabbing your waist to pull you closer, and you ran your fingers through his hair.  
After what felt like a blissful eternity, he pulled back.  
"You okay?" he questioned.  
"Better than okay."  
"I've wanted to do that for so long."  
"Then let's do it again."  
He laughed and pulled you back into his arms. In the background, another movie was starting, but you couldn't be bothered to care. You had Jughead Jones, and that's all you needed.


End file.
